Based at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, the mission of the Airborne Test Force is to provide training and support crucial to maintaining the future of the Aerial Delivery mission, with their experience and findings being used not only by the Army, but also by other branches of the military, the Department of Defense and other Federal departments and agencies, commercial entities, and international customers from both the governmental and private sectors. Their testing encompasses all aspects of the Aerial Delivery process, from rigging procedures and equipment to the suitability and efficiency of Airborne delivery platforms.
The Airborne Test Force is comprised of Army personnel serving as both parachute riggers and test jumpers, augmented by contractors with TRAX International Corporation, a provider of technical and logistical testing and evaluation services. Many of the TRAX employees working at the Yuma Proving Ground have previously worked as parachute riggers and also serve as test jumpers.
Also located at Yuma Proving Ground is the Army’s Military Free Fall School, with the two organizations sharing resources and providing assistance to each other whenever possible.
The Airborne Test Force beret flash, more accurately referred to as an “organizational flash” since it points to a single, discrete unit or organization, was approved along with the Force’s Airborne background trimming on 13 December 2011. Wear guidance for both the beret flash and oval is found in
Chapter 21-32, subsections (a) and (b) of the January 2021 edition. The regulations regarding the wear of ovals and badges vary between the uniform on which they are authorized to be worn; detailed instructions are contained in
Chapter 22-16, subsection (b) of the same manual.